This invention relates to colored contact lenses and methods of making colored contact lenses.
Colored contact lenses are often used for cosmetic purposes to change the apparent color of a wearer""s irises. For example, a person with brown or blue eyes desiring to have green eyes may wear green colored contact lenses to change the apparent color of a wearer""s iris to green.
Conventional colored contact lenses (also called cosmetic contact lenses) typically depend on the lens wearer""s iris structure to impart an apparent color change to the wearer""s iris. Such contact lenses have a colored iris pattern thereon. The pattern comprises discreet opaque color elements with generally non-colored areas (e.g., clear or slightly colored translucent areas) within the interstices of the pattern""s color elements. Knapp U.S. Pat. No. 4,582,402 discloses that a contact lens having an adequate amount of discreet opaque pigmented elements in the pattern combined with non-colored areas which permit the wearer""s iris structure to show through provides a sufficiently realistic and attractive illusion of iris color change to convince a casual observer that the iris color is natural, at least when the casual observer is at least five feet away.
A disadvantage associated with such prior art cosmetic contact lenses is that the apparent eye color of some people wearing the lenses does not look natural even when the casual observer is more than five feet away. In particular, the apparent color does not look natural when the actual color of the wearer""s iris is in sharp contrast with the opaque color of the contact lens pattern. Thus, for many people, such conventional cosmetic contact lenses are not a viable way for changing apparent iris color.
Another disadvantage associated with such prior art cosmetic contact lenses is that even when worn by wearers for whom the contact lenses are intended, the apparent iris color looks natural only when viewed from a distance of at least five feet by an ordinary viewer (i.e., a person having normal 20/20 vision). The ordinary viewer viewing the wearer""s eyes from a closer distance might determine that the pattern is not a naturally occurring pattern. In other words, the ordinary viewer might correctly determine that the wearer is wearing colored contact lenses.
Jahnke U.S. Pat. No. 5,414,477 and O""Campo U.S. Pat. No. 5,963,705, like the Knapp patent, disclose contact lenses having opaque intermittent elements and noncolored regions through which significant portions of the wearer""s iris structure are visible. These patents disclose making the intermittent elements of a single contact lens having up to three different color elements. The additional lens colors help to blend the color contrasting that occurs between the wearer""s iris and the colored elements placed on the contact lens. However, because the typical human iris has more than 1000 distinct colors, the prior art cosmetic contact lenses do not provide anything close to a universally appealing opaque contact lens.
Another disadvantage of conventional cosmetic contact lenses is that such lenses merely attempt to change the apparent color of wearer""s irises. The lens patterns of such cosmetic contact lenses do not emulate the detail and attractive structure of a natural human iris.
Among the several objects and advantages of the present invention may be noted the provision of an improved colored contact lens; the provision of such a colored contact lens capable of effectuating a natural appearing color change to irises of a larger group of people than prior art contact lenses; the provision of a contact lens capable of effectuating a natural looking change in the appearance of the wearer""s iris regardless of the actual color of the wearer""s iris; the provision of such a colored contact lens having an iris section colored in a manner to effectuate a change in the appearance of the wearer""s iris but which makes the presence of the contact lens substantially imperceptible to an observer observing the wearer""s eyes from a close distance; the provision of a colored contact lens which more closely resembles some of the intricate structural components a human iris; and the provision of a method of coloring a lens substrate to form a colored lens having a pattern of greater intricacy.
Generally, a colored contact lens of the present invention comprises a generally uncolored pupil region, a generally annular-shaped iris region surrounding the pupil region and adapted to cover at least 80% of a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens, a multicolored pattern on the iris region, and at least one generally uncolored region. The multicolored pattern is sufficiently colored to change the apparent color of an iris of a person wearing the contact lens and comprises a plurality of color elements. The at least one generally uncolored region is defined by one or more of the colored elements. The at least one generally uncolored region comprises at least one generally uncolored segment. The at least one segment has a length of at least 30 microns and a width of no greater than 60 microns.
Another aspect of the present invention is a colored contact lens comprising a generally uncolored pupil region, a generally annular-shaped iris region, and a multicolored pattern on the iris region. The iris region surrounds the pupil region and is adapted to cover at least 80% of a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens. The multicolored pattern is sufficiently colored to change the apparent color of an iris of a person wearing the contact lens and comprises a plurality of color elements. The multicolored pattern comprises a plurality of crypts of Fuchs elements each having the appearance of a crypts of Fuchs. Each of the crypts of Fuchs elements being comprised of at least some of the color elements. Each of the plurality of crypts of Fuchs elements contrast in color with the color elements adjacent the crypts of Fuchs elements and have a generally oblong shape.
Another aspect of the present invention is a colored contact lens comprising a generally uncolored pupil region, a generally annular-shaped iris region surrounding the pupil region, and a multicolored pattern on the iris region. The pupil region has a center. The iris region surrounds the pupil region and is adapted to cover at least 80% of a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens. The multicolored pattern is sufficiently colored to change the apparent color of an iris of a person wearing the contact lens. The multicolored pattern comprises a plurality of color elements. The multicolor pattern further comprises a pupillary margin region. The papillary margin region includes a generally annular-shaped band and a plurality of fingers. The pupillary margin region is comprised of at least some of the color elements. The band surrounds the pupil region. At least 90% of the band is within a radius of 4 mm from the center, the plurality of fingers extend generally radially outwardly from the band and away from the center. At least 90% of the plurality of fingers in aggregate are within a radius of 5 mm from the center.
Another aspect of the present invention is a colored contact lens comprising a generally uncolored pupil region, a generally annular-shaped iris region surrounding the pupil region, and a multicolored pattern on the iris region. The iris region is adapted to cover at least 80% of a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens. The multicolored pattern is sufficiently colored to change the apparent color of an iris of a person wearing the contact lens and comprises a plurality of color elements. The multicolor pattern further comprises a collarette region. The collarette region is comprised of at least some of the color elements. The collarette region comprises a collarette band at least substantially surrounding the pupil region. The collarette band has a generally jagged outer periphery and a generally jagged inner periphery. The collarette band has a width. The width of the collarette band at any point along the inner periphery is the shortest distance from such point to the outer periphery. The width of the band at any point of at least 50% of the inner periphery is no greater than approximately 1 mm.
Another aspect of the present invention is a colored contact lens comprising a generally uncolored pupil region, a generally annular-shaped iris region surrounding the pupil region and adapted to cover at least 80% of a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens, and a multicolored pattern on the iris region. The multicolored pattern is sufficiently colored to change the apparent color of an iris of a person wearing the contact lens. The multicolored pattern comprises a plurality of color elements. The multicolor pattern further comprises a collarette region comprised of at least some of the color elements. The collarette region comprises a collarette band at least substantially surrounding the pupil region. The collarette band has a generally jagged outer periphery and a generally jagged inner periphery, the inner periphery comprises at least a first plurality of inner edge portions and a second plurality of inner edge portions. The outer periphery comprises at least a first plurality of inner edge portions and a second plurality of inner edge portions. The first plurality of inner edge portions is closer to the center than is the first plurality of outer edge portions. The second plurality of inner edge portions is farther from the center than is the second plurality of outer edge portions.
Another aspect of the present invention is a colored contact lens comprising a generally uncolored pupil region, a generally annular-shaped iris region surrounding the pupil region and adapted to cover at least 80% of a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens, and a multicolored pattern on the iris region. The pupil region has a center. The multicolored pattern is sufficiently colored to change the apparent color of an iris of a person wearing the contact lens. The multicolored pattern comprises a plurality of color elements. The multicolor pattern further comprises a collarette region. The collarette region is comprised of at least some of the color elements. The collarette region comprises a collarette band at least substantially surrounding the pupil region and having a generally jagged outer periphery and a generally jagged inner periphery. The collarette band includes at least a first portion spaced less than 4 mm from the center of the pupil region and a second portion spaced at least 6.5 mm from the center of the pupil region.
Another aspect of the present invention is a method of coloring a contact lens. The method comprises providing a contact lens having a pupil region and a generally annular-shaped iris region surrounding the pupil region. The iris region is adapted to at least partially cover a wearer""s iris when the wearer is wearing the contact lens. The method further comprises providing a printer assembly having an inkjet print head and using the printer assembly to directly print a multicolor pattern on the iris region of the contact lens in a manner to alter the appearance of the iris of the wearer when the wearer is wearing the contact lens.
Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.